19 January 2008

church of the what?

First things first, let it be understood that I am not actually starting a church.

The blog title came to me quite some time ago. I bought my bike around the same time I undertook a major reevaluation of my spiritual life. It was-- and is-- the bike of my dreams, the kind of bike I'd lusted after since my visit to Amsterdam. What finally drove me to buy it was the simple desire to feel the wind against my face; the bike seemed to represent a feeling of freedom that I had only recently realized was possible. So alas, no expense was spared, and with the help of the good folks at Hyland Cyclery, I obtained the omafiat of my dreams-- a red, 3 speed Batavus Old Dutch.

To succinctly describe the experience of riding an omafiat (that's Dutch for granny bike), the bike is heavy and upright and the ride is smooth. Given the beauty of the Salt Lake valley and the excellent placement of the University of Utah campus, any ride can be a supremely spiritual experience. And so this blog was named for the "place" that I seem to do most of my worshipping these days, the bike that has come to represent the "untrammelled womanhood" spoken of by Susan B. Anthony. It embodies to me the immense simplification of my life, as I now allow myself to be happy pursuing happiness instead of unhappily waiting for it to show up. To be cliche'-- my life is about enjoying the ride.

In the film Stranger than Fiction, Harold Krick asks himself whether his life is a tragedy or a comedy. I see mine as a comedy, and hope that you will at the very least have a few laughs at my expense, and at the most glean something useful from what you read here.